John E. Bradley

Significant portions of state government could shut down soon because state legislators and Gov. Bruce Rauner haven't come to agreement on a budget. State workers could have their hours slashed or be laid off. The parties are far from agreement, as the governor rightly pushes back against House Speaker Michael Madigan's unbalanced and unconstitutional budget. Remarkably, while workers face layoffs, state legislators won't feel the pinch, thanks to a bill passed last year. It classifies legislator pay as a continuing appropriation — a budget item that state law mandates be funded even in the event of a government shutdown. The bill puts compensating part-time...

Related "John E. Bradley" Articles

Significant portions of state government could shut down soon because state legislators and Gov. Bruce Rauner haven't come to agreement on a budget. State workers could have their hours slashed or be laid off. The parties are far from agreement, as the...

House Speaker Michael Madigan likes to send "messages." He doesn't often explain what those messages are, but last week's surprising defeat of a bill to give the Chicago Public Schools a 40-day extension on its $634 million pension payment...

As he tries to win public support and gain leverage during an extended budget stalemate, Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner is seizing upon long-standing tensions pitting Chicago against the rest of the state in an attempt to peel Democratic legislators away...

I recently obtained a document distributed by Gov. Bruce Rauner's office detailing the membership lists and meeting times and locations of the secret state legislative "working groups."
The governor's office has insisted that not only should...

A battle over the statewide 911 surcharge on cellphone bills is developing in Springfield, as public safety officials and legislators duke it out over whether to continue the fee and possibly increase it.
With this monthly fee set to expire July 1,...

A year ago, lawmakers imposed a moratorium on special tax incentives used to help keep companies — and their jobs — in Illinois. They also created a committee to examine whether the program, which also rewarded companies even as they laid off workers,...

SPRINGFIELD — A panel of House lawmakers today voted down a proposal to impose a tax of one penny per ounce of sugar-sweetened beverages, saying it would have cost consumers an extra $2.88 per case of soda.Sponsoring Rep. Robyn Gabel, D-Evanston, said she...

SPRINGFIELD — The latest political power play at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum comes from Speaker Michael Madigan, who is pushing a plan to set up the center as a free-standing state agency despite opponents’ concerns it would become...

SPRINGFIELD--Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan advanced his proposal to make people who make more than $1 million a year pay a higher income tax Thursday, but a separate measure calling for a broader graduated income tax in Illinois failed in the...

When Councilman Pat McDaniel heard from the state's biggest company that it was moving the corporate headquarters from here, after nearly 45 years, he lowered his head and reached for a slice of cheesecake. Comfort food, McDaniel explained later.
He...

SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois House today approved a far-reaching pension reform plan pushed by Speaker Michael Madigan that is headed for an uncertain fate in the Senate.
The proposal aims to erase the state's nearly $100 billion pension debt by scaling...

SPRINGFIELD — A local government that gives an ex-lawmaker a fat paycheck would have to pick up the costs of any automatic increase in his state pension under a proposal the House passed overwhelmingly Thursday.
House Republican leader Tom Cross of...

SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois House on Wednesday resoundingly defeated a measure that would have required police officers to report more details about cases when they use stun guns and Tasers.The vote took place as more than a thousand gun rights activists...

The House made the first move against Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn’s budget proposal Thursday, lowering the estimate of how much money the state should expect to take in next year by more than $200 million.For a state that owes more than $8 billion in old...